Stalked
by Ketsui Tasogare
Summary: A new boy joins the school, he seems friendly and quite shy at first but what happens when he meets Tenten and develops feelings for her that are borderline dangerous. NejixTenten.
1. Chapter 1

Stalked

A new boy joins the school, he seems friendly and quite shy at first but what happens when he meets Tenten and develops feelings for her that are borderline dangerous. NejixTenten

Disclaimer: Naruto and the characters are owned by Masashi Kishimoto. I own my OC

Chapter 1

" _Well, let's see, my name is Kenzo Shizo and this is my high school experience. To be more specific it's my experience with a girl I met in high school. Now before I get into detail let me explain how this story is going to work._

 _Essentially this story is about me but there will be times when things are happening and I'm not there so there will be different points of view throughout the story. Fair warning, you may not agree with everything that I do in the story. Now let's get started…"_

It was the beginning of the school year and late in the afternoon not to mention my first time at the school. I'd just moved to town with my parents and they sent me to one of the top boarding schools in Japan. My entrance was as typical as they come—the new kid walking down the corridors of a large school, staring in awe at everything my gun-metal grey eyes could take in. I walked past several students in the same school uniform I was wearing—navy trousers for guys, skirts for girls, button up white shirts with a navy tie and an optional black blazer, jersey or pull over. I finally made it up the white tiled staircase and turned right to get to my room. I took out my room card, swiped it in the door and walked in.

My eyes were greeted by a spacious room painted in neutral colours. The walls were beige and the door frames and wall frames were mahogany brown. To the right of the room was a study desk with a computer, to the left there was a large queen sized bed with white and black covers and pillows. Just opposite the bed was the bathroom and in the centre of the room were two glass doors leading to the balcony—pretty fancy for a boarding school if you ask me.

I stood by the door to take in my new surroundings for a while then proceeded to start unpacking. About an hour later I finished and relaxed on my bed listening to music. I turned to my side and checked the time—19:38, the clock read, so I decided to head downstairs to get some food from the cafeteria. The eating hall was enormous and packed with students sitting at various tables enjoying their food and talking with their friends. I grabbed a tray and took a plate of spaghetti and meat balls and a bottle of cranberry juice.

After browsing for a while I chose a table and sat by myself and began eating. After eating I stood up to head back to my room when four girls walked in to the cafeteria. The one in the middle had cherry blossom pink hair and jade eyes, the girl next to her had long blonde hair and ocean blue eyes, the girl on the furthest left had long navy hair and pearly white eyes and the last girl—who caught my attention- had chocolate brown hair and eyes to match. She looked absolutely beautiful, everything about her was flawless. She had great long legs, a fantastic body and a cute face. I had to see her again.

The next morning I woke up and got ready for school. I packed my bag and left my room. The classrooms were pretty easy to find, my first class was biology with Kakashi Sensei—according to my timetable. His class was on the second floor, the third class on the left. I walked in to see everyone in disarray—some were on their phones others sitting on tables and others standing outside the classroom. Clearly this Kakashi Sensei had a habit of being late since the class is so out of order when he's not around.

Pretty much all of the seats were taken except for one—it was next to the girl I saw last night, the one with the brown hair and brown eyes. She was texting on her cellphone then she put it away. This was the perfect opportunity to talk to her. I took in a deep breath and walked over to her table.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" I shyly asked

"No not at all" she replied then looked at me with the most welcoming smile. I gladly took a seat next to her "Is this your first day here?" she asked

"How could you tell?"

"You're the most nervous looking person in this room" she chuckled, it was the cutest little laugh "Just relax; we won't be doing anything for the next fifteen minutes. Kakashi Sensei is notoriously late for his classes. So what's your name?"

"I'm Kenzo, and you?"

"I'm Tenten"

And that's where it all started, we spoke for a while and I found out that Tenten's an incredibly nice person not to mention funny. Time went faster than I thought and next thing I knew class was already over—well Kakashi Sensei did arrive but I don't remember much of what he was saying because my head was still spinning from my conversation with Tenten.

As time went by Tenten and I spent more and more time together. After about a month we were close friends; we went to class together and even did some assignments together. It was just a pity I couldn't see her all the time and I couldn't help but feel incredibly jealous whenever she spent time with her guy friends—the three most popular guys in school if I may add—namely Sasuke Uchiha, Neji Hyuuga and Shikamaru Nara. Apparently she's a part of their inner circle along with her girl-friends Sakura Haruno, Hinata Hyuuga-Neji's cousin, you can tell by the eyes-and Ino Yamanaka. And then there was Naruto Uzumaki who was known throughout the school as a trouble maker.

The seven of them along with Tenten made the most powerful group in the school—both socially and academically. But what made me angriest was that she spent most of her time with Neji Hyuuga—it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that those two had feelings for each other. He didn't deserve her, no one but I deserved her…I wish she felt the same way about me as I did for her.

The next day after school Tenten came over to my room—we had to study for a biology test for Friday. We were sitting by the table on the balcony, just relaxing for about an hour. Then we finally went back inside and got back to books.

"Alright let's get back to studying" she said as she took off her blazer and hung it on the chair then rolled up her sleeves. And if seeing her canary yellow bra through her white shirt wasn't bad enough, she took off her tie and undid the first two buttons of her shirt. I could have died right there—she had no idea what she was doing to me, I tried as hard as I could to hide the fact that I was blushing. Seeing her like that made my heart beat faster, I had to take a deep breath to avoid falling over—that's how much she had an effect on me.

At about five 'o' clock Tenten and I finished studying, after we said our goodbyes she went back to her room.

Tenten's POV

I swiped my card into the door and walked in to find Sakura studying, Ino doing her nails and Hinata reading on the balcony.

"Hey Tenten back from your study date already?" Ino teased as she set down her nail polish. Unnecessary? Yes—but was Ino going to keep teasing me about it anyway? Hell yeah she was.

"It wasn't a date Ino; we were really studying" I decided to clarify—not that she was paying attention.

"That's a pity, he's really cute"

"If you think he's so cute, then why don't you go after him?" I sarcastically stated

"Because I already have a great boyfriend" she bragged

"Yeah and I wonder if Shikamaru would approve of his girlfriend with her eyes on another guy"

"I'm keeping an eye on him for _you_. You definitely need a boyfriend and so far you have two guys on your waiting list" she stared coyly at me

"Two guys?" I raised an eyebrow at her and all she did was smirk then I finally knew who the other guy was. I face palmed and sighed.

"You've got to be kidding me, you really think that Neji and I…

"Of course and you guys know it too, but you just won't admit it"

"I agree with Ino, you and Neji clearly have feelings for each other. It's not difficult to see that." Said Sakura from her bed

"Well we're not a couple, we're best friends"

"Are you sure about that? I mean how sure are you that he doesn't have feelings for you? For all we know you could be friend-zoning him right now"

"I'm not friend-zoning him, I know he doesn't feel romantically for me"

"Did you ask him?"

"I don't need to ask him, I just know" I unsurely answered her. I really had no idea how Neji felt about me. It had never even crossed my mind that he might have feelings for me. But instead of entertaining them by admitting that I was unsure about him, I decided to head straight to my bed and leave the conversation in the air.

I took out my books to do my homework—what an evil thing homework was, the world would be a better place without it—but one of my books was missing. I must've left it in my locker, so I stood up and went to get it. The locker area was so empty without the students around to fill up the corridors; it was quite strange seeing it that way.

I dialled in my combination and opened my locker to get my book. As I was about to head back to my room I felt a hand grab my wrist—which immediately made me turn around. It was Kenzo; who had a smirk on his face.

"Did I scare you?" He chuckled

"You almost gave me a heart attack. I didn't even hear you coming" I replied as I closed my locker and looked at him

"Well since it's Friday tomorrow, you wanna hang out in my room after class?" he asked as we started walking back to our rooms

"Sorry tomorrow's Sakura's birthday so the girls and I are going out to celebrate" I saw a spark of disappointment flash in his eyes "But maybe some other time alright?"

"Sure thing" he said with a small smile

"Well I'll see you in class tomorrow" I watched him turn the corner before walking back into the room

The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful; I finished my homework—eventually, took a shower, talked with the girls for a little bit then went to bed at around ten p.m.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The next day at school was just as uneventful; class, lunch with the girls and the guys then more class and before I knew it school was already over. The four of us went back to our dorm room to get changed so we could go celebrate Sakura's birthday over an early dinner. However I—being the procrastinator that I am—only started getting ready at five p.m.

"Tenten would you hurry up, we need to go!" yelled Ino from the bedroom while I changed in the bathroom

"Alright, alright!" I yelled back as I fixed my hair then walked out of the bathroom

The four of us were dressed semi-formal: Sakura wore a white long sleeve button up shirt and a teal A-line summer dress over it with black ankle boots.

Ino wore her hair up in a bun and had black Mary-Janes; a canary yellow pencil skirt and a black long sleeve shirt.

Hinata tied her hair in a simple ponytail; and wore a long sleeve crimson jumpsuit that ended at her knees and nude heels.

I wore black heels with white knee socks; a navy A-line skirt with a white shirt tucked in and a black short sleeve blazer over that.

We were on our way out when I ran into Kenzo

"You said you were going to celebrate Sakura's birthday right? Then why are you guys so formally?"

"Well Hinata offered to treat us to dinner to celebrate and that's exactly why we're dressed like this. The struggles of being friends with a Hyuuga; no such thing as a casual eating time out." I explained before saying goodbye then catching up to the others

We took Sakura's sleek white Audi but Ino drove to the restaurant. It was a lot further in town than I thought. It took about an hour to get there; so we got to see the city light up as the sun went down. The girls were engaged in conversation but I was too distracted by the city lights and the different colours that the sun painted the sky as it turned from a golden yellow to rose pink and eventually to deep indigo. When we finally arrived at the restaurant I was full blown hungry.

Hinata POV

The atmosphere was semi-formal, dimmed lighting and candles on the tables—clearly not a restaurant you'd bring your kids to—but this was the atmosphere I grew up in, formal to the point of almost being impersonal and insincere—similar to the relationship I had with Neji, we are related even to the point of calling each other brother and sister but those were just titles without any significance; that is until Naruto was able to change my cousins mind and reinvest in me a confidence I never knew I had.

"…Hinata…Hinata" called Tenten "You're spacing out a little, you alright?"

"Hm? Oh yes I'm fine sorry"

A few minutes later the food we'd ordered had arrived and we began eating. We were having a great time, just talking and eating without the guys around.

"So birthday girl any romance in your future with a certain Uchiha?" asked Ino as she sipped her drink

"Doubtful but he did get me a gift"

"Ooh what is it?" she asked in excitement

Sakura took a small white card from her bag and opened it to reveal a gift card

"He got me a gift card to that fashion store everyone's so crazy about—

"Holy crap he didn't just get a gift card to any old clothing store, he got you a gift card for Exclusive Looks; only _the_ best place to get _the_ best clothes. How much is loaded on here?" Ino was pretty much drooling over it

"I don't know he wouldn't say, he said I wouldn't accept it if he told how much he put on it"

"Whoa that means that he put a lot of money on here, definitely a first move" she replied

"No it isn't, that's called gift giving"

"Sakura, Sakura a guy would never spend this much money on a girl unless he was serious about her" Tenten said and I agreed completely

"I think this is his not-so-subtle way of telling you that he's interested in you" I said

"I guess…" Sakura said almost as a whisper

"Well we'll talk about dating and boyfriends back at school, right now we're here to celebrate your birthday—to Sakura" Ino raised her glass and the others followed suit and clashed glasses.

Xxx

Sakura POV

It was Saturday early morning, the girls and I got back at around 23:54 p.m.—we ate and danced and partied and came back pretty tired. However-ironically- I woke up at half past five in the morning, my sleep just disappeared. So I decided to shower and get dressed then take a walk around the school. I loved the silence of the early morning and since it was still quite early I decided to watch the sun rise so I made my up to the roof, but I wasn't the first one there. There was someone sitting cross-legged staring directly at the horizon.

"I never pegged you as a morning person Sasuke" I said as I sat next to him

"Sometimes I like to watch the sun rise" he looked into my eyes as he spoke and I could feel my cheeks heat up

"I didn't know you could be sensitive" I joked

"Just what kind of person were you convinced I was?" he raised an eyebrow and smirked

"I mean you've always got this 'too cool for school' exterior and yet you really surprise me sometimes; I mean I didn't know you could be sensitive then again you can be thoughtful…by the way I never did thank you for your gift"

"You don't have to thank me" he returned his gaze to the rising sun "Have you used it yet?"

"No I haven't really decided when I'll use it exactly" I also looked to the horizon

"How's about now?"

"Now? As in right now?" I looked at him incredulously

"Yeah why not; it'll practically be empty therefore more enjoyable and easier to find what you're looking for"

"Good point…alright let's go" we stood up and headed to the student parking lot

Xxx

We arrived at Exclusive Looks-on the far richer side of the city-at seven a.m.; the place was quite empty just a few people here and there nice and empty just like Sasuke said it would be. I looked around the store in awe: two stories of the most amazing, stylish and not to mention expensive clothes in the city.

"Maybe now you wanna tell me how much you loaded on this card so I don't end up buying too much"

"No, I'll let you know when you've reached the limit. Just enjoy yourself alright" I was surprised by his words, he sounded so considerate and caring-not really words you'd associate with Sasuke when you first meet him but we have been friends for years so I know him pretty well but he still has his moments.

"Alright…but you're sticking with me throughout this adventure, I don't know anything about this rich lifestyle of yours so you're going to have to stay with me"

We walked around for a bit and I saw some outfits that actually looked really great so I picked a few and went to try them on

Normal POV

A few minutes later Sakura came out the changing room dressed in a white crop top with black skinny jeans and a navy blazer paired with black heels. The outfit showed off her long legs beautifully. She tried on a lot more outfits and asked for Sasuke's opinion on each of them and surprisingly he had genuine comments about each of them.

She then led Sasuke to the sunglasses section and chose a black pair with silver crystals-which she only found out later were Swarovski crystals, pointed out by Sasuke-and picked put a less crystal-ey pair for Sasuke and put them over his eyes and she put a grey scarf around his neck then observed her handy-work. She chuckled to herself

"What's so funny?" he asked

"Nothing it's just that you look more arrogant than usual in those" she chuckled again

"Is that so?" he smirked

"Yup definitely more arrogant" she smiled at him "I think I'll buy them for you"

"I got you this gift card to spend on yourself, you don't have to buy me anything"

"But I want to, there's no way I could spend however much this is on myself" they looked into each other's eyes before Sakura broke eye contact.

"Oh but there is one last thing I want to buy and I want your opinion on it" she took his hand and walked to the formalwear section. She asked him to turn around as she picked out the perfect dress for herself then walked to the men's section and picked out a suit for him. They both went to their separate changing rooms to try on their clothes. Sasuke finished first and admired himself in his navy blazer, white collar long sleeve shirt with a black skinny tie and black fitted trousers.

A moment later Sakura came out of the changing room in a white floor length A-line dress with a Grecian style neckline with gold embellishments. Sasuke could only stare as she twirled causing the liquid-like silk fabric turn with her.

"So what do you think?" she asked as she walked closer to him

For a while a million words rushed to his head to describe her but he couldn't turn his thoughts to words until he tried his hardest to choose one.

"Absolutely stunning" he finally managed to say making her blush in the process

After an exhausting three hours of shopping the place was getting pretty full so the friends decided to leave the store.

Back in the school's student parking area, Sasuke and Sakura climbed out pf his car and made their way back to the dorms. Just before they turned their separate ways Sakura spoke up

"Thank you, for today and for your gift. I really had a great time"

"I already told you, you don't have to thank—

She put her arms around him and held him close "I mean it Sasuke; this gift was really special not to mention you were with me the whole time. I never thought I could get you to go shopping with me" she chuckled

He put his arms around her as well

"If the right person asks; I'm willing to do anything" he said in her ear making her blush slightly. She looked up at him and found herself leaning in as well as him until their lips met. The kiss was gentle and sent a tingling sensation through Sakura's body. Afterwards they said their goodbyes and went to their rooms.

"Sakura, we've been wondering where you were. So you decided to have an early shopping spree without us" came Ino from her bed

"Yes I did, I couldn't sleep so I decided to get out of bed and take walk when I ran into Sasuke"

"Wait so you two went shopping together?" asked Tenten

"Uh-huh" she set her bags on her bed then sat down

"And then what happened?" Ino said sitting up eagerly to hear the rest of the story

"Well we shopped of course for a few hours and then we came back here…then we kissed" she whispered that last part

"YOU KISSED SASUKE" Ino yelled

"Stop shouting and yes I kissed him okay, happy?"

"Well it's about time" Tenten commented

"You're one to talk Tenten, it's not like you've kissed Kenzo or Neji"

"Nor do I intend to, how many times do I have to tell you that we're just friends?"

"You can say it all you want but it doesn't mean you'll convince us. They're both great guys."

"And I'm aware of that"

"So would you please make up your mind and go out with one of them already"

"You know what; I think I'm in the mood for some male company. I'll see you guys later" Tenten stood up from her bed and left the room. She was on her way to the cafeteria to get a quick snack when she ran into Kenzo

"Hey Tenten"

"Hey Kenzo"

"How was your night with the girls?"

"It was a lot of fun, but now I feel like I need to take a break from them so here I am.

"You know it's been a while since you and I have hung out together; so how's about you come on over to my room…tonight after dinner?"

"Sure, see you then" they said goodbye and she watched him walk away then got a packet of chips form the cafeteria then took a walk.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

She ended up by the car park and walked towards the silver Mercedes and saw someone sitting in the driver's seat. She opened the passenger's door and sat inside. The radio was on when she opened the door.

"So this is where you are when I can't find you" she addressed him

"I didn't know you looked for me that often" Neji looked at her

"Well I'm bored so I've come to keep you company"

"So I'm your object of entertainment now?" he raised an eyebrow at her

"Uh-huh you are now, friends are supposed to keep each other entertained"

"Depends on your definition of entertained" he smirked

"It's only been five minutes and you're already flirting" she changed her position on the chair so she was facing Neji

"I can't help it you just make it so easy for me"

"Oh? How so?" she raised an eyebrow

"I don't hear you objecting"

"And why would I do that…" she leaned in as did he "You know the girls have been giving me a lot of grief because I haven't actually kissed you"

"And what are you going to do about that?" his lips hovered above hers

"I think it's about time I fixed that problem" she closed the gap between their lips and kissed him. Neji more than willingly kissed back.

They made their way to the back seat to continue their lovers' passion.

Xxx

"I guess they were right I should've kissed you earlier" she said while she straddled his waist.

The parking lot was getting dark as nightfall approached

"Well I hate to leave but I have other arrangements"

"With?" he asked and kept his arms around her waist

"Kenzo, I told him I'd swing by his room tonight to hang out"

"Still hanging out with him I see" his facial expression changed and looked quite sour

"Is that a hint of jealousy I detect?" she smiled cheekily at him

"Not at all, there's just something about him I don't trust"

"Well I do, I'll see you later okay?" she kissed him one last time before she left

Tenten POV

I was in Kenzo's room; we were just relaxing on the balcony; looking up at the star covered sky. It was just so comfortable, just the two of us eating snacks and having drinks on a perfect evening. A while after I took a sip of my drink I started feeling extremely drowsy…I couldn't explain it, I just couldn't keep my eyes open and next thing I knew, I fell asleep.

Kenzo POV

As soon as I was sure Tenten was asleep I carried her inside and placed her on my bed. Finally…I finally had her with no one to get in my way. The drug I put in her drink would ware off in ten minutes so I had to work quickly. I tied her arms behind her back then tied her legs to the bed…

Tenten POV

My head cleared up and the drowsiness disappeared. I slowly opened my eyes and sat up; I couldn't move my legs at all, as soon as my vision cleared I saw where I was—I was tied to Kenzo's bed, I had no idea what was happening, my heart immediately began beating faster—I was terrified.

I heard Kenzo walk in from the balcony…

"Kenzo, what's going on here? Why am I tied up?" I anxiously asked

"Tenten, you have no idea what power you've had over me ever since I met you."

"What are you talking about?" I really had no idea what he was talking about, and he had a terrifying look in his eyes. There was something in them that made him look different—scary.

"Everything about you is perfect, you're beautiful; smart; funny and so many other things" He sat next to me on the bed and caressed my check. I shuddered at his touch.

"I don't understand, than why am I…

"Because I want you so badly and I couldn't stand watching you spend so much time with those other guys, especially Neji Hyuuga" he practically spat his name. I had no idea he felt this way, that his feelings for me were this extreme. I just couldn't process it all.

"Kenzo, please untie me"

"I'm afraid I can't do that. I'm never letting you go"

"And what will you say when people start asking about me?"

"I've already got that covered so you don't need to worry."

Out of nowhere he tore a piece of sheet from his bed and used it to gag me. Then the worst began—he began stroking my cheek then his hand slipped down to my chest—I knew what was coming next. He unbuttoned my shirt and managed to get it off, despite my constant movements and protests. As if that wasn't bad enough he sat over me and pushed me down on to the bed then he ungagged me…

"Get off of—

His lips crashed into mine as he deeply kissed me. I froze—I couldn't believe what was happening to me. He was really planning to get as much from me as possible. I couldn't take it anymore; I started squirming from under him in all directions and as furiously as I could, trying to get him off me, to no avail. He just kissed harder—switching from my lips to my neck. Tears of fear rushed from my eyes and I could feel my whole body trembling—realisation finally set in, it was only a matter of time until he got to my skirt.

After a while he stopped kissing me while his hands made their way to the middle of my back—he unclipped my magenta bra and cut the straps to get it off me. My arms got the natural instinct to cover my chest but I couldn't since they were tied up. I felt so vulnerable—I couldn't do anything to stop him. I closed my eyes and let all the fear and frustration come down as tears left my eyes. I flinched when he put his hands on my breasts.

"I've got to say Tenten I'm very impressed with what I see. What a phenomenal body you have"

"Get your hands off me!" I screamed which earned me a hard slap across the face. My cheek burned with the hot sting from his hand. My messy hair curtained my face after he hit me. That just caused more tears.

"You better keep your voice down or I'll do more than just slap you. Do you understand me!" he aggressively stated

I just remained quiet—I was too despondent to do anything. My heart sank to the bottom of my stomach when his hands reached my skirt—there was no way he was going to get it off since my legs were tied to either side of the bed. He retrieved a knife and cut it off and threw it to one side. I tried so hard to close my legs and hide my nakedness but my entire body was restricted from doing so. My black underwear was the only thing I had left on my body.

After struggling for so long, I reached my lowest point and finally gave up. I felt so defeated and powerless. My eyes were itchy and swollen from all the crying but that was when I started crying the most…

Neji POV

I hadn't seen Tenten for a few hours and none of her friends had seen her either. The last time I saw her that day was just before she went to Kenzo's room. So I decided to go ask him where she was—there was something very ominous about him, something that I didn't trust. Everything he did and said had more meaning than he let on and most of it was about Tenten.

My imagination got the best of me so I ended up running to his room. As soon as I got to his door I heard noises coming from the other side—there was definitely someone in there with him. I pressed my ear to the door to hear what was going on.

"… _you're not kissing hard enough, if you don't cooperate I'll make this even more painful for you Tenten"_

" _I'm not some toy you can play with whenever you want; you can't make me do anything, you bastard!"_ I heard her yell from inside and then I heard a hard slap and Tenten cry out in pain. I needed to get in there. But there was no way I could just kick the door open since it was electronically locked. It would only open if the room card was swiped inside it. I grabbed the fire extinguisher from the wall and began banging it against the door handle. After a few tries the door started to loosen.

"Tenten, Tenten can you hear me!" I yelled as I continued banging

Tenten POV

I heard his voice from outside the room along with the banging on the door.

"Neji, Neji I'm inside—

Suddenly all the air was squeezed right out of me as Kenzo tightly gripped my throat trying to silence me. My body went into fight mode as I squirmed violently, trying to get him to stop strangling me. My lungs fought— against the ever decreasing width of my larynx— as they almost burst trying to force more air into my chest.

"Shut up, shut up right now!" he yelled as he squeezed

Neji POV

After banging for a while the door began to budge and was easy enough to kick—so that's exactly what I did and the door flew open with a bang. As soon as I rushed in I was horrified at the scene in front of me. A shirtless Kenzo sitting on top of a practically naked—not to mention tied up—Tenten

"What the hell is going on in here!" I didn't even get time to blink before Kenzo came charging at me, fists at the ready.

Tenten POV

Relief washed over me as Neji burst into the room; I knew he could handle himself against Kenzo. Neji was good at a lot of things—fighting was one of them. He managed to knock out Kenzo and immediately ran over to the bed. I looked up at him—messy haired, tear stained faced, beaten and all— and he stared right back at me with a lot of emotions etched on to his face—regret, pain and fury. I just started crying again as I realised that it was all over.

Neji quickly untied my legs—and he did it without looking at my naked body—then he untied my hands from behind my back. As soon as I was unbound I immediately wrapped my arms around him and I full blown cried into his shoulder, my body was still shaking uncontrollably. Neji hesitantly put his arms around me and stroked my hair. After about ten minutes I managed to calm down and broke away from the hug. Neji gave me his blazer to wear and cover my undressed body.

He then helped me up but I couldn't walk, my legs were too shaky, I couldn't stand for more than five seconds without almost falling. He picked me up bridal style and carried me back to his room. On the way there I leaned into him and closed my eyes, relieved that the situation was over.

Neji POV

Tenten looked awful, her hair was a mess, her eyes were red and swollen from all the crying, her body was still trembling from what happened and not to mention her cheeks had red marks from being hit so hard by that bastard Kenzo.

Tenten POV

As soon as we arrived in his room he put me on the bed and told me he was going to get some help. The room was filled with silence, all except his clock on his bedside table that ticked away. I brought my knees up to my chest and rested my chin on them.

Neji POV

I walked downstairs and turned right to the third door on the floor. I knocked twice and waited for her to open up.

"Hi Neji…" she noticed how distressed I looked "What's the matter?"

"It's Tenten, she's hurt." Sakura was one of the school medics so she was the best option at the moment. We left immediately and went back to my room. Tenten was sitting right where I left her.

Tenten POV

"Hey Sakura" I quietly greeted her

"Tenten, what the heck happened to you?" she asked with a surprised expression on her face. "We need to get you to the infirmary"

Xxx

"Neji could you give us a minute, I need to examine her body"

"Of course" he stepped out of the room

"Red marks on your face, bruises on your neck, and scratches on your chest. Tenten what happened to you?" she asked as she treated my wounds

"I really don't want to talk about it, Sakura" I spoke quieter with each word

"Tenten, you have to tell someone and you'll feel better once you get it off your chest. Please talk to me" I sighed in surrender, and because I didn't want to repeat myself, I called Neji back inside. I decided to tell both of them together.

"Well Kenzo and I were sitting on the balcony in his room. About half an hour later I started feeling really drowsy but it wasn't natural, it felt induced."

"He must have spiked your drink" Sakura concluded

"Anyways I couldn't keep my eyes open and I fell asleep. As soon as I woke up I found myself tied to his bed with my arms tied behind my back. Then he walked in from the balcony and confessed to me as well as stating that he wasn't fond of me spending time with other guys—especially you Neji. And after that was when the nightmare began…"

It took me about ten minutes to explain the entire story to the both of them, up to the point when Neji came in and saved me.

"That explains all the injuries. Well you're not going anywhere for the next few days, you need to stay here until you've recovered." Sakura explained

"Will she be alright here by herself?" Neji asked with genuine concern for me

"I'm staying here with her for the night, just to be sure she's fine" she reassured him

After he gave me one last look he turned around and left. I felt my heart sink as he walked out the room, I didn't want him to leave, he made me feel safe.

A few minutes later Sakura went to the next room and told me to get some rest. That wasn't a difficult thing to do, I was exhausted so I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Sakura POV

It was just after midnight when I started feeling drowsy. Thank goodness it was Saturday because I was going to feel exhausted later. Just as I was about to lay my head down, I heard a loud piercing scream…

" _Tenten!"_ I yelled in my head and stood up and ran into her room. She was screaming in her sleep and fidgeting around in the bed—obviously reliving the horror she'd just gone through.

"Tenten, Tenten wake up, it's just a nightmare!" I shook her to wake her up. After struggling for a moment Tenten finally opened her eyes. She was breathing heavily and covered in sweat. She looked around the room in confusion.

"Sakura?" she looked at me then embraced me while in tears

"It's okay you were just having a nightmare" I hugged her back

"Please call him, I need him here" she said in between sobs

I took out my cellphone…

"Neji, get here fast"

Xxx

"…And when I walked in she was screaming and fidgeting around in her bed. When she finally woke up, she asked me to call you"

Neji POV

When I walked in the room she sat up and looked at me. I took a seat next to her.

"Sakura told me about the nightmare, how do you feel?"

"Really weak…" she looked away from me "You know I never did thank you for getting me out of there"

"You don't have to thank me, I would do anything to protect you" she placed her hand on top of mine.

"Could you…stay for a bit, just until I fall asleep again?"

"Sure" she shifted so there was enough space on the bed for the both of us. She rested her head on my shoulder and closed her eyes. I closed my eyes as well and listened to her breathing.

A while later she started breathing fast and panicking in her sleep.

"… _eji, Neji"_ she said my name in her sleep as she began moving around

"Tenten I'm right here, calm down" I whispered in her ear and as soon as I did she relaxed. Clearly she was going to be like this for the rest of the night so I decided to stay with her.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sakura POV

I woke up the next morning surprised to see that it was raining up a storm outside. I walked to the next room to check up on Tenten and was pleasantly surprised to find Neji asleep next to her with their hands intertwined—best friends my foot. I was surprised when a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around my waist. I turned around to find Sasuke looking over at Neji and Tenten.

"What happened to Tenten?"

"Hell happened to her, c'mon let's go I'll tell you everything in the next room" I took his hand and led him out.

I told him everything…

"So that Kenzo guy did all of this, what a bastard. How long has Hyuuga been here?"

"Since last night, she asked me to call him and ever since he's been in there with her she hasn't made a sound."

"What's with those two?" he asked—a question that was on all our minds.

"I don't know, but there's obviously something going on with them. The fact that he was the first person she asked for really shows a level of trust that she holds only for him, maybe even something more."

"They'll come around sometime, well we better get going."

"Going? Where are we going?" I raised an eyebrow at him

"I'm taking my girlfriend out to breakfast"

"Really…" I folded my arms over my chest "What have you done with the real Sasuke?" I asked sarcastically which resulted in him giving me a sharp stare. But when it came to me his stares just weren't as icy as they tried to be—one of the many advantages of being his girlfriend.

"I'm just kidding Sasuke but I'm still worried about Tenten"

"You don't have to be she has Hyuuga with her"

I thought about it for a while and then I thought about the last time I'd been out with Sasuke.

"Alright let's go" but before we left I wrote a quick note to Tenten, then I followed Sasuke out the door.

Tenten POV

I was awake but my eyes were closed, a smile immediately crept onto my face when I felt his chest—that I was sleeping against—rise and fall. I was so comfortable in his arms, I never wanted to leave his embrace—maybe the others were right about Neji and me, not that I was ever going to admit it but I definitely did feel something quite strong for him.

I slowly opened my eyes and waited for them to adjust to the light of day before I sat up.

"You're finally awake" he said with a small smile on his face

"And you ended up staying here the whole night, why?" I decided to ask, when I asked him to stay, I only meant until I fell asleep again. I didn't expect him to stay with me the entire night.

"I was going to leave after you fell asleep but every few minutes you started panicking in your sleep and calling my name, so I decided to stay with you."

"Oh, well thanks" I turned away from him to hide the blush on my cheeks but I'm pretty sure he saw them anyway. As soon as I recovered from my Neji moment—yes I decided to call it a Neji moment—I returned to reality and my mood seemed to plummet. I got off the bed and walked to the balcony window and watched the rain pour down from above. Neji could tell that something was bothering me so he walked to the balcony window and stood next to me.

This question had been eating away at me ever since I was brought to the infirmary last night.

"So where's…" I couldn't finish the sentence; just the thought of him brought back everything from that night with him.

"I don't know, I found his room empty when I checked it out last night" that was the last thing I wanted to hear. So the man that sexually assaulted me was nowhere to be found, my heart started beating faster and my body went completely numb—I couldn't keep myself up anymore…

Neji POV

I caught her just before she hit the ground—her body was trembling. I placed my hand under her chin to tilt her head upwards.

"Tenten are you alright?"

"No I'm not alright, not by a long shot. We don't know where he is, what if he tries something else on me, you know when you're not around"

"That won't happen"

"How can you be so sure I mean what about when you're at school? You're not with me all the time and I'm terrified that he might come back."

I sighed heavily and managed to calm her down—at least for the time being.

Monday morning arrived and there was still no sign of Kenzo. Neji and I were sitting on the balcony together, he was in his uniform and I was in my pj's.

"I've already spoken to Lady Tsunade; she said you could take the week off to recover."

"Thanks…" I looked down at my phone to check the time "Quarter past seven, you should get going if you still want to get breakfast before class" just when I thought he was about to leave, he handed me something—his room card.

"Erm…why are you giving me your room card?"

"To stay in my room until I get back"

"Oh…but no I can't stay in your room when you're not there, that would be rude"

"Not if I'm giving you permission" he looked at me with a blank expression which meant he thought that I'd said something foolish

"Alright if you're sure" I gave him a hug and watched him leave

Xxx

Sakura POV

It was about half past twelve in the afternoon, I asked Neji to come by the infirmary during break—I was doing last minute inventory. Ten minutes later I finished up so Neji and I headed downstairs to the cafeteria. The corridors were almost completely empty; except for maybe two or three students getting their books from lockers. As soon as we made it inside I grabbed a juice for Neji and me then followed him to a table so we could sit together—there was some information regarding Tenten that needed to remain exclusive to the two of us.

As soon as we found an empty table; he pulled out the chair for me—what a gentleman—then sat down himself.

"Is Tenten still having nightmares about Kenzo?"

"They're not as frequent but yes she still is" he answered seriously

"So where is she now?"

"I gave her my room card so she should be my room" I couldn't help but look surprised—he let her stay in his room all day long; and just to think school is almost over. I couldn't help wondering what was going to happen as soon as he got back to his room. He totally noticed my reaction.

"What?" I asked trying—and totally failing—to hide my smile

"I know that look; there's no point in trying to hide it"

"Fine and you know what you're right; Ino and I have given her enough grief about this so I might as well ask you"

"Ask me what?"

"Do you have feelings for Tenten? Feelings that are more than just friendly and perhaps even romantic" I looked him straight in the eyes and waited for him to answer, he flinched ever so slightly before answering—if I'd even blinked I would have missed it. That was all the confirmation I needed

"No, I don't; our relationship is a friendship nothing more" I had to admit though he was really good at hiding his true feelings but I could see right through him and he probably figured out that I knew, which resulted in him averting eye contact. I decided to spare him and change the subject.

"Are her wounds healing up?"

"Yes the bruising on her neck is almost completely gone and her face is completely healed" he carefully avoided mentioning the last area but I wasn't letting him off that easily

"And her chest area" I smirked

"I wouldn't know, I never checked" he smirked back

"Are you sure, not even by accident?" he just raised an eyebrow at me

"Just kidding, I know you wouldn't do that" just as I finished my sentence, the bell rang. We both stood up and headed to class together.

Tenten POV

I was reading a book on Neji's bed when I started feeling a bit drowsy so I decided to take a nap—maybe just until Neji got back which would be in about an hour's time.

Xxx

Neji POV

I walked into my room and found Tenten asleep on my bed with a book over her face—she had clearly made herself at home. I didn't want to disturb her so I quietly did my homework and after I finished that I went to take a shower.

Tenten POV

" _I've got to say Tenten I'm very impressed with what I see. What a phenomenal body you have"_

" _Get your hands off me!" I screamed which earned me a hard slap across the face. My cheek burned with the hot sting from his hand. My messy hair curtained my face after he hit me. That just caused more tears._

" _You better keep your voice down or I'll do more than just slap you. Do you understand me!" he aggressively stated_

 _I just remained quiet—I was too despondent to do anything. My heart sank to the bottom of my stomach when his hands reached my skirt—there was no way he was going to get it off since my legs were tied to either side of the bed. He retrieved a knife and cut it off and threw it to one side. I tried so hard to close my legs and hide my nakedness but my entire body was restricted from doing so. My black underwear was the only thing I had left on my body._

 _After struggling for so long, I reached my lowest point and finally gave up. I felt so defeated and powerless. My eyes were itchy and swollen from all the crying but that was when I started crying the most—_

I shot up and looked around the room, heart racing and breathing heavily. I was still in Neji's room by myself—safe.

A few seconds later I noticed a sound coming from the bathroom—it was the shower. I guess I wasn't alone after all, the water stopped running; he must have finished showering.

I watched the handle for the bathroom door move down but I was totally unprepared for what I saw—he walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. My chocolate brown eyes were greeted by his well-defined chest and muscular—but not too muscular—arms. All that accompanied by his long wet brown-black hair that contrasted his striking, pearly white eyes made me see him in a way I never thought possible—sexy. I mean don't get me wrong, I've always known that Neji was attractive but I specifically never thought so until that moment. Never had I seen such perfection—tearing my gaze away from him was the most difficult thing. But I managed to regain my composure before I spoke

"Neji, how long have you been here?"

"About two hours now I guess"

"Two hours! Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I didn't think it was necessary"

"Oh so it's okay for me to just make myself at home in your room and enjoy a nap on your bed?"

"Well seeing that I'm the one that told you to come here in the first place, then yes…" I just rolled my eyes at him then lay down on his bed while covering my eyes—I just couldn't keep looking at him without blushing.

"Why are you covering your eyes?"

"I'm just respecting you privacy, if the roles were switched I know—scratch that—I'd expect you to do the same thing for me" As convincing as I sounded I'm pretty sure Neji figured out why I was really closing my eyes—I could practically hear him smirking.

"Wait a minute, why did you scratch out the first part of your answer? Do you honestly believe that I would watch you get dressed?" he asked a little shocked

"I don't know Neji, would you?"

"Of course not" that answer came a little too slowly for my liking

"See that, it's that very hesitation that makes me think twice"

"Oh c'mon, if I really wanted to—don't you think I would have done so by now" he smirked and decided to make me even more uncomfortable by sitting next to me on the bed

"Would you stop doing that" I grabbed a pillow and covered my face

"Stop doing what?" he found this situation very amusing to my displeasure

"Stop smirking so loudly"

"You can hear me smirking" he chuckled

"Of course I can, you're being so cocky right now, I don't even have to look at you to know that you're smirking." I felt the weight of the bed change which meant that he stood up

"Now would you please put a shirt on, I'm practically begging you" my voice came out muffled since I spoke through the pillow

"Wow I never thought I'd hear a girl—let alone you—beg me to put a shirt, usually you're supposed to beg me to take it off—

I threw the pillow at him

"Hey don't get me confused with one of your fangirls"

"It's kind of difficult not to, I mean, they like me and you like me. What's the difference?"

"Excuse you Mr popular, those annoying girls follow you for shallow reasons—heck they only follow you because you have an attractive face and a great body whereas I like you because you have those things and I actually know you on a personal level"

"So you think I have an attractive face and a great body?" he looked at me while buttoning his shirt

"What?" I was genuinely confused

"That's what you just said" it took me a second to catch on, then something in my head clicked

"Whoa wait a minute that's not what I meant!"

"But that's what you said" he teased

"Well I wasn't paying attention to what I said"

Xxx

"So we're all agreed that tonight we go out and eat" said Ino

We all agreed going out to eat was kind of our thing these days. Any opportunity we found to go out we did.

I decided to go into to town to fetch my jacket from the dry cleaners even though Ino offered to drive me there. I felt like taking a walk to clear my head of this Kenzo nonsense.

The sun started setting when I left the shop and made my way back to school. I took out my phone to check the time when someone bumped into me and I dropped my phone. As I bent to pick it up a hand tightened around my neck and dragged me into an alley. I managed to break out of his grip and get a glimpse of his face.

"Kenzo—

But he pressed a wet cloth to my face, chloroform, I didn't stand a chance. I felt myself becoming weaker with each breath I took until I finally fell unconscious.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kenzo POV

I picked up her phone and sent a message to her friends to eliminate any suspicions as to why she hadn't returned yet.

" **It's getting too dark to walk back on my own. Meet you guys at the restaurant. It's close to where I am."**

Sakura POV

I had just finished getting ready to meet the others at the restaurant. I was wearing black pumps, grey skinny jeans along with a cherry coloured long sleeved button up shirt with a collar but the shirt revealed my stomach. On top of that I wore a black waistcoat.

By the time I got to the parking lot, Ino was already in her car at the wheel. I climbed into Ino's grey Mercedes and we were on the road within minutes. The restaurant was a lot further than I thought; we'd been driving for forty minutes already. I was absent mindedly staring out the window when we slowed down in front of a red traffic light. The car next to us was a convertible and I could have sworn that the driver was Kenzo.

My suspicions were proven correct when he looked in my direction; as soon as he recognised me, he winked at me than took off when the light turned green. A few seconds later my cellphone vibrated, I got a message from him:

" **See if you can keep up, oh and Tenten says hi"**

"Ino follow that convertible" I told her

"What why?"

"It's Kenzo's car, he recognised us and wants us to follow him. He's got Tenten."

Ino stayed hot on his tail for about ten minutes when Kenzo pulled over in an empty street and got out of his car. My phone vibrated again:

" **We need to talk, just the two of us"**

"What does the message say?" Ino asked

"He wants to talk, just me and him though. Stay here I'll be right back."

"But Sakura…" she held my wrist before I could get out of the car

"Ino please, the less people are involved the better" she finally let go of my arm. I walked out of the car and shivered slightly when cool breeze swept over me—maybe I should've brought a jacket along.

Kenzo was leaning against the hood of his car with his arms folded and a smirk on his face. As soon as I got to his car he spoke up…

"My my, don't we look sexy tonight? Spending the evening with your friends?" he asked

It took me a few seconds but I noticed it as soon as I glanced down at his waist. Right there in plain sight, he had a pistol in a holster. He wasn't even being discreet about it; he wanted me to see it. As soon as I did he walked closer to me and put his arms on my waist, I immediately felt uncomfortable.

"I'd rather you didn't" I said as I irritatedly removed his hands from my waist

"But now that you know what I can do, I know you won't fight me" he was referring to his pistol

"What do you want?" I acidly asked him

"I need you to give Neji a message for me. Tell him if he wants his girlfriend back, then he needs to come to this address in one hour's time. And if he's late I'll more than happily 'entertain' myself with Tenten. I'm sure you understand what I mean by that" he put the paper with the address in my back jeans pocket; he didn't put it there by accident.

"And what if I had refused to do all this?" I asked

"Simple…" he turned me around and wrapped one arm around my stomach and his other hand went straight for his pistol but now his chest was on my back. He pointed the gun from under my arm directly at the back of Ino's head "Your answer would depend on whether or not I shot Ino in the head" he whispered in my ear then ran the cold metal weapon over my cheek and down my neck. It sent chills down my back.

"Alright fine, I'll do it, just put the gun away"

"See that wasn't so difficult now was it. Oh and another thing, be sure to _only_ tell Neji, I have eyes and ears all over the restaurant your friends are at. If you so much as breathe a word to anyone else, I'll know and you'll have sealed Tenten's fate…enjoy the rest of your evening" he released me and got back into his car and drove away.

My heart was beating so fast I thought I was going to pass out. My hands were trembling when I got back into the car.

"So what did he tell you?" Ino looked at me with concern evident in the way she spoke

"I-I can't say" Ino decided to let it slide and she started the car and drove off. We arrived at the restaurant ten minutes later.

The rest of the group namely—Shikamaru, Neji, Hinata, Naruto and Sasuke were already sitting at a table with their drinks. Ino went to sit next to Shikamaru; I checked the time; only forty-five minutes until Neji had to meet Kenzo.

Neji POV

Sakura walked towards me and stood behind my chair. She put both her hands on my shoulders and leaned in to whisper in my ear:

"I need to talk to you…alone" I knew immediately what she was referring to so I didn't waste any time; I excused myself from the table and followed her.

"It's about _him_ isn't it?" I asked as soon as we were out of earshot from the group. She was about to speak but something caught her attention and stopped her from speaking. Instead she took my hand and guided me outside. We sat down on a bench near the entrance.

"Sorry but we couldn't talk in there, Kenzo has some friends working for him in there" she explained

"No problem, hey are you alright, you look a little shaken up?" I asked as I took a good look at her. Her face was quite pale and she looked a little frightened

"Yeah well being threatened at gunpoint will do that to you"

"Gunpoint?" I was genuinely confused by her statement

"Yeah, Kenzo got himself a new toy and threatened to use it on me and Ino."

"What the hell does that guy want?" I got really angry really fast

"He wants Tenten to himself and you out of the way…permanently. He told me to tell you that he wants to settle this; meet him at this address…" she pulled out a piece of paper from her back pocked and gave it to me "By nine o clock and if your late, he'll entertain himself with Tenten. I'm sure I don't have to explain what that means."

I crumpled the paper in my hands as I began shaking with anger. I'd had just about enough of this damn bastard taking advantage of Tenten.

"Alright I'm going" I stood up

"I'm coming too"

"No you're not, there's already one person I care about in danger, the last thing I need is you getting in danger as well." I looked into her jade eyes and could see the worry in her eyes. I turned around and began walking to my car but she caught my arm.

"Neji…bring Tenten back…and please be careful"

"I will, don't worry" I put my arm on her shoulder to reassure her then I left for good

Sakura POV

I could still feel the warmth of his hand on my shoulder, I sighed heavily and blinked back the tears I could feel stinging the corners of my eyes. I just couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't going to go as planned as I headed back inside the restaurant.

As soon as I was back inside I took a deep breath and walked back to the table with the others.

"Is everything alright Sakura and where did Neji go?" Naruto asked

"Um, everything's fine Naruto, Neji just needed to take care of an emergency" I managed to say without giving too much away-we were being watched after all.

"Does it have to do with Tenten not being here?" Naruto suddenly got serious; he picked up from my mood that something was wrong and knew that I couldn't tell him everything. To say that I was impressed that he picked that up was an understatement.

"Yeah, something like that"

A few seconds later my phone vibrated, it was a message from Neji:

" **Thought I'd keep you posted, I just arrived"** the message read

" **Good luck"** I replied

"…akura, Sakura you zoned out, are you okay?" Sasuke asked

"Yeah I'm fine, my minds just a little preoccupied at the moment. I was just thinking about Neji."

"What's going on between you two, you've been acting very secretive lately"

"Nothing is going on between us" he couldn't have started this at a more inconvenient time

"Then what were you two talking about just now and why have you guys been spending so much time together lately?"

"I-I can't tell you but I promise you it's not what you think" I looked over Sasuke's shoulder and saw one of the waiters looking directly at me

"Well what am I supposed to think when my girlfriend isn't giving me any straight answers?" his voice was rising, I couldn't let the situation escalate out of control

"If you insist on acting like this then let's talk outside" I stood up and didn't wait for him, I just carried on walking until I got to my car. Sasuke caught up to me.

"I need you to trust me, why can't you accept that I just can't tell you what going on?" I was starting to get emotional "What could I possibly be doing with Neji?"

"I don't know, I don't know anything about this situation and that's what makes me so nervous. If I didn't know any better I'd think that you were… seeing him behind my back" he just looked at the ground. So that was it, he was feeling insecure and not without good reason. I'd kept him out of the loop for days and I'd been spending a lot of time with Neji. Anyone would assume what he's thinking. I felt terrible; I had to make him understand.

"Sasuke…" I took his hands "Look I know it looks like there's something going on between me and Neji but there isn't. We're just friends caught up in a serious situation. I love you and I would never dream of betraying you, my relationship with you is untouchable and nothing and no one will ever change that" I wrapped my arms around him and held him close to me "I just need you to trust me"

We stayed in each other's arms for a few seconds before Sasuke spoke up

"I trust you" I broke away from the hug and kissed him on the lips


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Neji POV

I just arrived at the address Sakura gave me, with ten minutes to spare. Tenten was safe—for now. The front door was already open so I didn't waste any time and walked straight in. The house was empty and all the lights were off, it looked like it could be his parents' house but…where were they?

I heard a cry from upstairs and immediately rushed up there thinking that Tenten could be in danger. The source of the noise came from one of the bedrooms; as soon as I found the right one I burst through the door. The lights were also off in that room but the curtains were open, filling the room with natural light from the full moon. It took me a while to notice that there was someone sitting on the bed with their back to me…

"Tenten?"

"Neji? What…what are you doing here?" she turned around and looked at me but not with an expression of relief like I was expecting but rather a look of fear and worry. I couldn't see her face very well but from the way she spoke I could tell that she was crying. I quickly rushed over to see her

"No Neji don't come near me, I don't want you to see me like this" but her cries fell on deaf ears, I wasn't just going to leave her there. As soon as I got to her, I tilted her head in my direction so I could see what she was trying to hide but nothing could have prepared me for what I saw…

"Tenten what's—" I gasped in horror as soon as I took a good look at her. Bruises all over her face and neck, a large cut on her left cheek, her shirt was cut open revealing her bra and her bottom lip was bleeding as well as her hands tied behind her back. As soon as she saw my reaction, she broke down crying and hung her head. I held her in my arms.

"What the hell has done to you?!" I could feel the rage building up inside me

"Just gave her a little discipline. I like my girls obedient while I'm having my fun" Tenten and I turned to see Kenzo standing at the door with his arms folded. She was trembling in my arms; she was absolutely terrified of him.

"Now be a good girl and step over to my side" he had his pistol pointed at the both of us. She looked at me one last time then slowly walked over to him. I wanted to grab her and pull her back but I couldn't risk him shooting her. As soon as she reached him; he turned her around making her face me.

Kenzo then used his right hand to hold the pistol to Tenten's temple and ran his left hand slowly up her thigh and under her skirt making her wince. I got angrier with each passing second which seemed to delight Kenzo in every way. Tenten just stood where she was; tears continuously gliding down her cheeks. All I could do was look at him in disgust and contempt.

Tenten POV

My nerves were shot, I had no strength left. My heart was thundering in my chest and my breathing was erratic as I concentrated on the pistol held against my right temple. He could've pulled the trigger at any moment, ending my life in an instant. But for some reason I was more concerned about the fact that he was using me to get back at Neji—then came the worst thing; he unbuttoned my navy skirt and pulled down the zip—I cried out

"Please…stop" I was crying again and tried to pry his fingers off of me but he just moved his arm around my neck and cocked his gun.

"Try that again and the next mistake you make will be your last" he spoke into my ear "Now let's make this even more interesting…well for me anyways. Neji come here and finish undressing her for me would you?"

My heart sank and Neji's eyes widened in shock. He couldn't have asked him to do anything worse. I held my breath as he pressed the pistol even harder against my temple. Neji panicked

"No stop!" he yelled

He walked over to me and stopped right in front of me. We looked into each other's eyes for a few seconds until I finally closed mine. I had already forgiven him for what he was about to do but his eyes would haunt me forever; they were filled with so much anger but even more regret. I knew he was never going to forgive himself for this. I held my head up and tried to hold back my tears as he slid my torn shirt off my shoulders but the worst had yet to come.

His hands froze when they reached my hips, I bit my lower lip. He couldn't bring himself to do it; deep down I knew it was more unbearable for him than it was for me but he knew if he wanted to keep me alive he had to do it. Everything just seemed to move in slow motion, I couldn't hold in a cry when he slowly removed my skirt, I could feel his hands trembling as he did it and let my skirt drop to my ankles.

He looked at me with tears at the corners of his eyes. There was so much emotion behind those pearly white of his it was unbelievable.

"I'm so sorry" he whispered to me

"It's okay" I whispered back to him

Kenzo let out a wicked laugh when he saw how defeated Neji was.

"How does it feel Neji? Watching me explore every inch of your best friends body" he then licked my neck which sent shivers down my spine "You're feeling a whole bunch of emotions: rage, regret, sadness, fear, jealousy…now you know how I felt everytime you put your hands on Tenten." He spat

"I've never taken advantage her!" he yelled back

"Is that so? Well let me tell you something, you should have done so when you had the chance. Because you have all the control; power over your partner and the best part is that they won't struggle with you so you can go on for as long as you want" he went on to slide my bra strap off my shoulder.

"You sick bastard, why the hell are you doing this?!"

"Pure obsession, that's all" his hold on me weakened "And you know, I've come to realise…I've run out of usefulness for you…"

My heart stopped, that meant that he was going to…

Kenzo moved the gun form my temple and pointed it at Neji but he moved to fast. As soon as Kenzo pulled the trigger, Neji slapped his hand upwards making Kenzo shoot the roof and drop his gun which slid across the room. Neji pulled me out of his arms and kicked Kenzo to the ground. He hit his head and lay on the floor unmoving. I sighed in relief and buried my face in Neji's chest; I felt safe when he wrapped his arms around me.

A few seconds later I heard a laugh that made the hairs at the back of my neck stand on end—it was Kenzo.

"Oh did I forget to mention…I have a second pistol…

Time froze—with no time to react, Kenzo pulled out the gun, and I looked to Neji who was ready for him. Barely a second passed when Neji pushed me out of the way causing me to slam into the wall. I heard Kenzo cock his gun…

"Kenzo don't!" I managed to stand up and started running "Neji—"

BANG!

Drip, drip, drip…

Within seconds there was a small pool of blood; Neji's body lay motionless on the ground. I could still hear the sound of the explosion even after the gun had been fired. I ran over to his body; he'd been shot in the shoulder and was losing blood fast. I was crying so much that the tears blurred my vision. I picked up my shirt and tied it around his arm to stop the bleeding but he still hadn't woken up yet; I felt a large bump at the back of his head. I felt sick to my stomach, why wasn't he waking up I kept asking myself but my thoughts were interrupted when Kenzo grabbed me by the ankle and pulled me towards him. He slammed me onto the floor then climbed on top of me and held my arms down.

"I'm not finished with you yet babe" he pressed his lips on to mine

I'd had enough, something inside of me snapped and I felt this surge of energy. I suddenly felt like I could do anything.

"Get off me!" I yelled and crashed my forehead into his causing him to stumble backwards. I pushed him off and tried to make it back to Neji but he grabbed a fistful of my hair and pulled me up and slammed me into the wall…

"Now you're dead!" he held his gun in front of my forehead. I closed my eyes and waited for whatever was going to happen

"Get away from her!" someone yelled followed by a gunshot

I opened my eyes and saw Kenzo's body fall to the ground—he'd been shot. I looked to the door to see who'd taken him out, and I was surprised to see Sasuke standing at the door with a gun in his hand.

"You alright?" he asked as he walked over to me

"Yeah, but Neji's…"

"Don't worry the police and an ambulance is on its way" he took off his jacket and gave it to me, I took a step and immediately fell forward, luckily Sasuke caught me.

"Looks like I'm not as okay as I thought" I was still trying to process everything "Sasuke…when did you…how did you and where did you get that gun?"

"I've had it for years. Sakura explained everything and told me where you both were. Turns out I came at the right time."

"Tell me about it"

Xxx

Sasuke POV

It had been an hour since we arrived at the hospital. I watched Tenten wake up and look at me and smile.

"Hi" she said

"Hey" I smiled back at her

"How long was I asleep?"

"An hour now" she broke eye contact and looked down at her hands. I knew what she was going to ask next…

"And Neji…is he…"

"Still unconscious, yeah"

"I want to see him" she opened her blankets and was about to get out of bed

"Whoa, where do you think you're going? You need your rest as well" I laid her back down and sat on the edge of her bed. She held my hands between hers.

"Thank you Sasuke, if you hadn't stepped in when you did…

"Don't worry about that now; I'm just glad you're okay"

"I don't know what I would do without you; I hope you know how much I care about you"

"I care about you too; I wouldn't want to lose one of my closest friends" she smiled at me then yawned. That was a good indication as any to get going.

"I should let you rest, I'll come back in the morning" she nodded in agreement then released my hands. After that I did something unexpected; I leaned in and kissed her forehead, just to let her know that I was there for her.

Tenten POV

The next morning was cloudy and cold; Sasuke had just left when the nurse walked in. She brought in a tray of breakfast and put it on the mobile tray. When I asked her about Neji's condition, she tucked a strand of her long brunette her behind her ear and looked at me for a while.

"His bullet wound has been stitched up but because of the severe head trauma I'm afraid he's…in a coma"

"A coma?" My heart could've stopped right then, I balled my hands into fists and began trembling because I got so emotional.

"You really love him, don't you?" the nurse asked

"What?" I blushed, I'd forgotten she was still in the room "What makes you say that, he's just a very close friend of mine" I replied, the warmth in my cheeks intensifying

"I'm not so sure he is, when you've been a nurse for as long as I have, you can tell what kind of relationship the patient has with the person worrying about them. If being a nurse has taught me anything it's to cherish the time you have with the people who are important to you. A life is a very precious thing. I've been in situations where I'd bring a patient their breakfast and by lunchtime the very same day they'd passed away. Look Tenten, if you love Neji like I _know_ you do; tell him"

"I don't know if I can bring myself to do it. For the same reason that most people don't their crushes their true feelings—the fear of being rejected"

"Well it's better than him not waking up and you spending the rest of your life wondering 'what if?' It would be sad for you to confess your feelings to him only to have them rejected but at least you would have removed that burden from your life. And who knows…" she stood up and headed to the door "Maybe he feels the same way about you, it's all about taking a chance."

My wounds began healing and I was discharged from the hospital two and a half weeks later but Neji was still in a coma.

Days turned into weeks and before I knew it a month had already passed. I was sitting in Neji's hospital room. I watched his chest rise and fall as he breathed—that was the only thing that confirmed that he was still alive, the rest of his body was as still as could be. I felt so guilty; I took his hand and started crying. I genuinely felt like I was being punished, the most important person in my life was fighting for his. I would never forgive myself for allowing this to happen to him.

My thoughts were interrupted when someone walked into the room—it was Hinata and she had a vase of flowers in her arms. She walked to the other side if his bed and placed the vase on the side table.

"Hey Hinata" I greeted

"Hey Tenten, how long have you been here?"

"Since one p.m."

"It's seven p.m. now, you've seriously been here for six hours?"

"I didn't even notice that it was dark out. I've literally focussed all my energy on Neji" she returned her focus to him

Xxx

Tenten POV

It was a sunny Saturday morning, I got out of bed and went straight to the shower. I thought about Neji the entire time I was showering. I decided that I would go visit him later on. It had been two months since he got shot and was in a coma—he still hadn't woken up.

As soon as I finished dressing I heard a knock at my door. I was quite surprised, it was only eight a.m.; most of my friends weren't even awake yet. But when I opened the door I was beyond stunned at the person outside—it was Neji

"Neji…you're back… you're finally back" I immediately wrapped my arms around him and he hugged me back

"I'm sorry for putting you through that" he whispered

We sat in my bedroom on the bed; we had a lot to talk about.

"When did you wake up?" I asked him

"At about five a.m., the doctor did some final check-up's and discharged me so I decided to come see you first. And another thing, I wanted to apologise again for what I did to you during the whole Kenzo incident."

"Stop, I don't want to hear that. You don't have to apologise, you didn't have a choice and I forgave you before you'd even started." I placed my hand on top of his

"But I'll never forgive myself for doing that, even if I didn't have a choice. I felt like a monster, stripping you down like that." He closed his eyes

"Hey, hey if anyone should be apologising it should be me. This whole thing had been about me and I ended up dragging you into it" I looked down

Neji POV

I felt something wet land on our hands, a tear—Tenten was crying.

"If I had realised Kenzo's intentions sooner none of this would have happened. You wouldn't have needed to come and rescue me. It's all my fault and I know it, it's my fault you got shot and it's my fault you were in a coma for two months…it's all my fault and I'm so so sorry Neji…" she cried even harder, I took her into my arms.

I had no idea she was carrying such a heavy burden all this time, she managed to keep all those feelings bottled up for two months.

"Everything you just said now…it isn't the only reason you're crying is it?"

"I thought I was going to lose you. All those days in the hospital and you never moved. There were days when I thought your chest would stop moving too and you'd be gone forever. I drove myself crazy worrying about you; I was angry at myself for putting you in that situation and I even ended up being angry at you. I wondered why you'd done it; why did you risk your life to save mine?"

I put my hand under her chin and made her look up at me; she needed to understand how I felt.

"Tenten listen to me; I would do _anything_ to protect you. If getting shot and lying in a coma for two months guarantee's your safety; then I would do it again. I would do it because I'm crazy about you; I would do it because I love you Tenten." I cupped her face between my hands, her eyes widened slightly when I told her I love her

"You…what?" she asked in disbelief, I smiled

"I love you" I leaned in and kissed her

Tenten POV

I sat still for a few seconds; I couldn't believe what was happening; Neji just confessed to me and he was kissing me in my bedroom. Once I got over the shock, I put my arms around him and held him closer to me as well as I deepened the kiss. He pulled me into his lap and put his arms around my waist. His lips on mine, my lips on his. Everything we were feeling: relief, happiness, loving, longing; all of it was poured into that one fiery and passionate kiss.

After we broke apart I looked him in his eyes and smiled at him.

"I love you too Neji."


End file.
